Agenda and minutes

Major G F Wyatt

 

The Chairman reported with sadness that former County Councillor Major George Wyatt had died on 10th February, 2008.  Major Wyatt had been elected to the Council in 1977 and served until 1981 representing the former Market Harborough Rural No. 2 electoral division.  He had served on the Environment, Education Arts, and Police Committees and Manpower Subcommittee. 

 

Members joined the Chairman in standing in silent tribute to the memory of Major George Wyatt.

 

It was moved by the Chairman, seconded by Mr A M Kershaw and carried:-

 

"That the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 5 December 2007 copies of which have been circulated to members, be taken as read, confirmed and signed."

 

The Chairman invited members who wished to do so to make declarations of interest in respect of items on the agenda for the meeting.

 

The following declarations were made:-

 

Member                     Minute No.                Interest

 

Mr. Sheahan                   136                        Personal Non Prejudicial (Home to School Transport)

 

Dr. O'Callaghan              136                        Personal Non Prejudicial (School Governor)

 

Mr Shepherd                   137                        Personal Non Prejudicial

 

(A)       Mr Boulter asked the following question of the Leader or his nominee:

 

"1.       Does the Leader support the idea that an endowment fund should be established to give a greater degree of independence to the Bradgate Park Trust and to provide funds for new initiatives, leaving existing funding channels to meet the costs of ongoing management and upkeep of the Park?

 

2.         Would the Leader support the making of a contribution to any such fund by the County Council?"

 

Mr White replied as follows:

 

"1.       I am advised that the Bradgate Park Trust established two endowment funds in 2006 and the Trust is actively seeking contributions.

 

2.         No doubt the Trust would be delighted to receive a contribution for the endowment from the County Council or indeed the City Council who is the other Holding Trustee for Bradgate Park.  Mr Boulter may know if a similar question is being asked of the City Council.  It is a matter of priorities and I note that no request for a contribution to the Endowment Fund has been made to the County Council by the Trust.  I also note that the letter requesting the 2008/2009 annual contribution by the County Council to the Bradgate Park Trust maintains that the Trustees “are very conscious of the financial pressure faced by the Holding Trustees” and have therefore retained the level of requested annual contributions at the same level (in cash terms) for the last 5 years."

 

(B)       Mr Houseman asked the following question of the Leader or his nominee:

 

            "Energy firm Npower recently announced that electricity prices for its domestic customers will rise by 12.7% while gas bills will see a 17.2% increase.  Furthermore, it was highlighted that some customers in the East Midlands face a rise of almost 27% in electricity prices and 24% for gas.

 

Does the Leader agree that this regional variation in pricing discriminates against people in Leicestershire and that some of our most vulnerable residents, including older people, will be forced to choose between heating and other essentials as fuel bills rise?"

 

Mr Sprason replied as follows:

 

"Energy supply companies are justifying the regional variation in price by the variation in costs of transportation, particularly of gas.  In addition to Npower, British Gas has recently made changes to its pricing structure with the remaining companies likely to follow.  Parts of the East Midlands, including Leicestershire, are particularly vulnerable to these price variations due to their distance from current gas delivery and storage locations.

 

Many energy analysts anticipate that high and rising energy prices are likely to continue.  It is therefore likely that people in the East Midlands will continue to feel the pressure of rising costs and our vulnerable residents will indeed find themselves at increased risk of fuel poverty.  The number of households in fuel poverty has increased from 5.7% in 2004 to 8.1% in 2005 (State of the Region Report 2008). 

 

I recognise that these issues are a priority for our region and for Leicestershire.  These increased charges are likely to exacerbate the problem of fuel poverty and impose an additional burden on our vulnerable residents.

 

There is a need to raise these matters with the appropriate bodies. I will, therefore, undertake to write to the Regional Minister, Phil Hope MP, and the Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) to raise both the potential of gas storage within our region and the issue of regional variations in price. In addition, I will write to Ofgem about the regional variations in prices and the possibility of additional support for fuel poverty measures through  ...  view the full minutes text for item 135.

It was moved by Mr Parsons and seconded by Mr Page:

 

"(a)      That subject to the items below, approval be given to the MTFS which incorporates the recommended revenue budget for 2008/09 totalling £313,756,610, as set out in Appendix A to the report and includes the growth and savings for that year as set out in Appendix D thereto;

 

(b)        That approval be given to the projected revenue budgets for 2009/10 and 2010/11, set out in Appendix B to the report, including the growth and savings for those years as set out in Appendix D thereto and to the undertaking of such preliminary work, including consultation, as may be necessary towards achieving the savings specified for those years;

 

(c)        That the level of reserves as set out in Appendix K to the report be noted;

 

(d)        That the amounts of the County Council's Council Tax for each band of dwelling and the precept payable by each billing authority for 2008/09 be as set out in Appendix M to the report;

 

(e)        That the Chief Executive be authorised to issue the necessary precepts to billing authorities in accordance with the budget requirement above and the tax base notified by the District Councils, and to take any other action which may be necessary to give effect to the precepts;

 

(f)         That approval be given to the 2008/09 capital programme as set out in Appendix F to the report;

 

(g)        That approval be given for planning and design purposes for the 2009/10 and 2010/11 capital programmes as set out in Appendix F to the report subject to arrangements within the Financial Procedure Rules and Standard Financial Instructions to allow commencement before the planned programme year or the adoption of substitute schemes;

 

(h)        That the financial indicators required under the Prudential Code set out in Appendix G to the report be noted and that the following limits be approved:-

 

	2008/09	2009/10	2010/11
	£m	£m	£m
Authorised limit for external debt
i)   Borrowing	411.0	434.0	436.0
ii)  Other long term liabilities	0.2	0.2	0.1
TOTAL	411.2	434.2	436.1
Operational boundary for external debt
i)   Borrowing	391.0	414.0	415.0
ii)  Other long term liabilities	0.2	0.1	0.1
TOTAL	391.2	414.1	415.1

 

(i)         That the Director of Corporate Resources be given delegated authority to effect movement within the authorised limit for external debt between borrowing and other long term liabilities;

 

(j)         That the following borrowing limits be approved for the period 2008/09 to 2010/11:-

(i)                  Upper limit on fixed interest exposures 100%

(ii)                Upper limit on variable rate exposures 35%

(iii)              Maturity of borrowing

 

	Upper Limit	Lower Limit
	%	%
Under 12 months	30	0
12 months and within 24 months	30	0
24 months and within 5 years	50	0
5 years and within 10 years	70	0
18 years and above	100	25

 

(k)        That the Director of Corporate Resources be authorised to enter into such loans or undertake such arrangements as necessary to finance capital payments in 2008/09, subject to the above prudential limits;

 

(l)         That the Capital Strategy, Risk Management Strategy, Reserves Policy, Treasury Management and Annual Investment Strategy and Environment Strategy set out respectively in Appendices H, I, J, N and O to the report be approved."

 

An amendment was moved by Mr Boulter and seconded by Mr Rushton:

 

"(i)       That paragraph (a) of the motion be amended to read as follows:-

 

'(a)       That subject to the items below, approval be given to the MTFS which incorporates the recommended revenue budget for 2008/09 totalling £313,756,610, as set out in Appendix A to the report and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 136a

FLOODING

 

(a)       That this Council notes:-

 

(i)         that it has recognised the importance of the environment and climate change in previous debates on these matters;

 

(ii)        the Climate Change agenda is likely to force the Council to change its priorities and allocation of resources;

 

(iii)       that whilst flooding has always been an issue in localised areas, the perception is that flooding is becoming both more severe and more widespread.

 

(b)       That the Council recognises:-

 

(i)         the progress made by the County Council and others to tackle flooding in the County since the Easter 1998 floods and the publication of the Bye Report;

 

(ii)        that more needs to be done in the County on flood prevention and alleviation;

 

(iii)       that this is best done in partnership within the County involving districts and other agencies;

 

(iv)       that solutions have to be cost effective;

 

(c)        That the Council requests the Cabinet to take steps to ensure that:-

 

(i)         the County Council not only plays its full part in flood prevention through its work with drains, gullies, bridges and highways work, but takes a leadership role in a campaign on flooding within the County including, if necessary, taking powers under the 1991 Land Drainage Act; 

 

(ii)        a multi-agency ‘Leicestershire Flood Task Force’ of limited duration is established comprising the County Council, relevant district councils, the Environment Agency, Severn Trent, the Council's representative on the Flood Levy Board and others to be chaired by a cabinet member with County Council members drawn from councillors whose areas have been affected by flooding;

 

(iii)       the Task Force produces a map of flooding incidents in the County and  draws up a prioritised list with actions and timescales for each area, the priorities depending in part on the number of dwellings, businesses, public buildings and others that have been flooded or are at risk;

 

(iv)       the Task Force assigns responsibilities for these actions between the relevant members of the Task Force and where appropriate member support each other in bidding for funding to resolve these issues;

 

(v)        Riparian land owners are reminded of their responsibilities;

 

(vi)       In pursuing plans for housing and other development, risk from flooding will be an important factor in assessing suitability for development and that Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) including for example porous pavement technology are included in such plans to ensure they are as near ‘water neutral’ as is possible.

 

It was moved by Dr O'Callaghan and seconded by Mr Sheahan:

 

"(a)      That this Council notes:-

 

(i)         that it has recognised the importance of the environment and climate change in previous debates on these matters;

 

(ii)        the Climate Change agenda is likely to force the Council to change its priorities and allocation of resources;

 

(iii)       that whilst flooding has always been an issue in localised areas, the perception is that flooding is becoming both more severe and more widespread.

 

(b)       That the Council recognises:-

 

(i)         the progress made by the County Council and others to tackle flooding in the County since the Easter 1998 floods and the publication of the Bye Report;

 

(ii)        that more needs to be done in the County on flood prevention and alleviation;

 

(iii)       that this is best done in partnership within the County involving districts and other agencies;

 

(iv)       that solutions have to be cost effective;

 

(c)        That the Council requests the Cabinet to take steps to ensure that:-

 

(i)         the County Council not only plays its full part in flood prevention through its work with drains, gullies, bridges and highways work, but takes a leadership role in a campaign on flooding within the County including, if necessary, taking powers under the 1991 Land Drainage Act; 

 

(ii)        a multi-agency ‘Leicestershire Flood Task Force’ of limited duration is established comprising the County Council, relevant district councils, the Environment Agency, Severn Trent, the Council's representative on the Regional Flood Defence Committee and others to be chaired by a cabinet member with County Council members drawn from councillors whose areas have been affected by flooding;

 

(iii)       the Task Force produces a map of flooding incidents in the County and  draws up a prioritised list with actions and timescales for each area, the priorities depending in part on the number of dwellings, businesses, public buildings and others that have been flooded or are at risk;

 

(iv)       the Task Force assigns responsibilities for these actions between the relevant members of the Task Force and where appropriate members support each other in bidding for funding to resolve these issues;

 

(v)        Riparian land owners are reminded of their responsibilities;

 

(vi)       In pursuing plans for housing and other development, risk from flooding will be an important factor in assessing suitability for development and that Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) including for example porous pavement technology are included in such plans to ensure they are as near ‘water neutral’ as is possible."

 

An amendment was moved by Mr Parsons and seconded by Mr Rushton:

 

'That the motion be amended to read as follows:-

 

"(a)      That a time-limited response, as proposed in the motion proposed by Dr O'Callaghan, is unlikely to have any meaningful or worthwhile impact;

 

(b)       That in contrast, effective management of flooding and attendant risks can only be achieved through a strategic and co-ordinated approach in line with existing structures at sub-regional and regional levels, on which the County Council and its partners are already represented;

 

(c)        That, accordingly and in order to assist the ongoing development of such an approach, the report to Cabinet which will identify priorities for immediate expenditure on improvements to highways drainage systems also address the relevant responsibilities of local authorities and public sector agencies; the role of the Local and Regional Resilience Forums in respect of flooding; issues already identified for remedial action and improvement; and the outcomes of the Pitt Report commissioned by the Government following the summer floods of 2006." '

 

Arising from comments by Mrs Sherwin, the Leader undertook to have regard to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 137a